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Thread: picker, finger(er), strummer...

  1. #1
    Registered User
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    Default picker, finger(er), strummer...

    New to the TG. 'Coming from the viola, of all things. Same string names, same musical compass, sounds similar when plucked...

    Question: Is the TG versitile in the sense that it can be picked with plectra of whatever sort, strummed with plectrum or finger(s) or fingered as a classical guitar although differently tuned from a 6-string classical guitar.

    I would prefer to learn the instrument by fingering. Is that just a pipe dream or is it a valid possibility that others are doing? Just asking. 'Don't mean to offend anyone.

    germano
    _____
    Television is very educational. Every time someone turns it on I go to another room and read a book. .....Groucho Marx

  2. #2
    Registered User Malcolm G.'s Avatar
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    Default Re: picker, finger(er), strummer...

    Welcome germano.

    I must admit that it is very early in the day here in Canada, but I can't figure out what a TG is, unless you mean Tenor Guitar?
    Malcolm Grundy from Montreal

  3. #3
    Registered User
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    Default Re: picker, finger(er), strummer...

    Very versatile Germano. The original tradition, seemingly the reason for creating this instrument, was to replace the tenor banjo and give tenor banjo players a way of staying employed. As the instrument lived out in the public arena, other non plectrum ways of playing were (and are being) discovered and explored. Personally I get the biggest kick out of playing Bach (especially the Cello Preludes) on a tenor guitar. This can be done with a plectrum but with the fingers, the sound seems much more ethereal.

    With the new interest in the small guitars (and ukulele's) a lot of more traditional tunes are being explored and enjoyed. With you coming from a Viola background, the fingering and note placements will be familiar. The concept of four tone chords rather than double stops will be a momentary huge step. Pizzicato will take on a new reality and hopefully it will be fun and enlightening. In this cut by Eddie Davis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g85xH8DHn_s he is playing primarily with his thumb and index finger and laying some very serious chord changes all over the neck. The point of this ... unlike a viola or violin, there are no hard and fast rules. TG's are undergoing a new lease on life and the sky's the limit regarding style and even musical choices.

    Get one and see what happens, they are fun, enlightening and delightful to play. Often regular guitarists have told me they had no idea a tenor could be played that way. The only thing you might have problems with is understanding the symmetrical chording which is possible on mandolin family instruments ... a good tenor banjo book will help with that.
    Mandola fever is permanent.

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